Resident Evil: Simply Murder
by Hotaru Shidosha
Summary: Chapter 4! w00t! Chris, Claire, Carlos and Leon get info about an ocean facilty owned by Umbrella where they are testing with the G-Virus. It's rated 'R' for langauge and violence. Let the pain begin!
1. Infiltration

A/N: Hey, minna! I just got finished reading the last RE book: Code Veronica and now there aren't anymore for now. So I decided to write some of my own stuff for it. I have an OC in here and if you guys would like me to put up a separate bio about her feel free to tell me to. Anyway this is obviously my first RE fic so please be nice. Enjoy. Please R&R....

Disclaimer: Don't own it cuz if I did Leon would be mine.... 

**IMPORTANT**: Umbrella found Willaim Birkin's files on both the T-Virus and the G-Virus as well as other stuff. That's how they get there hands on the formula. (That's just my explanation for my fic. They try to get t the G-Virus later. Leon thought he destroyed it in the underground labs in Raccoon. HUNK gets it later but gets killed by the William Birkin Tyrant himself.) Oh, and even though Resident Evil is a Japanese game, I'm making it so that they don't understand Saki…. She's Japanese. (Duh)

Resident Evil: Simply Murder

Chapter 1

Chris was happy to see Jill and Rebecca again. He was also glad to meet John, David, Leon, and Carlos, but now they had to split again. Jill, Rebecca, John, David, and Barry were all presently on their way to Asia with information from the mysterious Trent. It was the first time Chris had met Trent but from the looks on the others faces; there were things about him that rubbed them the wrong way.

Now, Claire, Carlos, Leon, and himself were headed toward an Umbrella facility located near Raccoon City. Trent had given them the low-down saying that they were testing with the G-Virus. He told them that it was located on the shoreline and that they were using marine life as test subjects. However, only knowing that much made Chris uneasy about the whole situation. He didn't like that Claire was going as well but she'd insisted and this would help him in keeping an eye on her.

_'Also a good way to watch her get killed.'_ He mentally kicked himself for even thinking that as he glanced across the van to see her peering out the window. 

"Hey, we're almost there," Leon called back from the driver's seat. Chris watched as Carlos nudged Claire's arm from the back.

"Hey, you ready, _amigo_?" He asked in his thick Hispanic accent. She gave him a small smile, nodding. The van came to a stop, the only noise present was the wind. Leon looked back, his blue eyes illuminated by the moonlight pouring through the windows.

"Ready?" After a quick weapons check, Chris opened the sliding door, jumping out.

"Okay, here's the game plan," he started, facing them, "We go in, hope everyone's still sleeping, grab the disk, and get the hell out of there." Trent explained that at this facility they kept information on making the G-Virus and its antidote.

"I like the sound of that," Carlos muttered. A chilled ocean breeze passed over, playing with their hair. Claire brushed her red bangs aside, her gray-blue gaze scanning the others' faces finally landing on Leon.

"Hey, Leon, you okay?" He looked up, his blonde bangs falling into his eyes.

"Yeah. Just nerves." She nodded, following her brother who started leading them towards the compound.

---

Jack Riverside sighed, leaning back in his chair. The only source of light in the small cluttered office was the computer screen which was littered with serial numbers and codes. Tilting his head, he looked over at the clock seeing the glowing red numbers read 1:13 AM.

_'I need sleep.'_ Stifling a yawn, he got up, not bothering to push in his chair. He was about to leave the room when he stopped upon remembering something. He turned, walking over to the computer and putting a sleep lock on it. A sudden knock at the door startled him, breaking him from his daze. _'Damn. Don't these people sleep?' _Opening the door, Jack's blue gaze fell on green eyes.

"Oh, good. You're up."

"Now," Jack said, sighing. The man smiled, realizing that he'd stopped Jack from going to bed. "So what is it, Mitch?" Mitch smiled once more but this time it was more of an evil smirk. Mitch often unnerved Jack. He thought the man was pure evil and his facial expressions often proved the point. _'Correction. The man _is _evil.'_

"Well, you know the cutie the clean-up crew picked up from Raccoon?"

"Not really. But go on."

"Well, she doesn't speak English so the others and myself have decided to use her in the G-Tyrant Program."

"What!?!" He started walking, Jack at his heels.

"She's seen too much and if she tells someone who'll understand her....."

"But the Program?! She's only so young! She doesn't deserve that..."

"Well, then maybe she shouldn't have come to Raccoon." Jack gave him a cold look.

"As if she knew." Mitch shrugged.

"Even so, they're getting her now." Jack stopped short, staring at Mitch's back.

"I will be no part of _your_ insanity." Mitch stopped as well, turning towards the other man, smiling cruelly.

"Your loss."

---

She was afraid. It was cold, dark, and she was scared out of her wits. Nineteen year old Saki Mitsragi had become a prisoner of Umbrella Inc. Tears streaked down her face at the memory of Raccoon City. She came in from Japan to visit her cousins only to find the whole place destroyed and deserted. Except there were men in protective suits and as soon as they spotted her she was arrested. 

Moonlight poured in from the only barred window, dancing across her silk Japanese style short-sleeve shirt and pants which were a deep navy bluish purple with yellow floral print. She continued to fumble with her bracelets, her pale metallic blue nails shining in the moonlight as well. It was at this point that she heard distant voices and footsteps approaching.

_'No! They're coming for me!'_ Though for what, she didn't know. Even though she could speak English she only spoke in her native tongue, royally pissing them off in the process. They'd said she was useless and she hoped that they would let her go but images of Raccoon kept flashing, telling her that that option was impossible.

"Who gave you authorization," came one voice.

"_I_ don't need it," came a second one. This one sounded strangely calm.

"Bullshit! You're not suppose to be doing this, are you!?"

"Go to bed, Jack."

"Mitch! And you two! Why are you helping him!?" The door squeaked open, light pouring inside, blinding her. There were four men. One looking exceedingly calm, another stressed, and the last two didn't really show any expression. She guessed that the concerned one was Jack and the other was Mitch.

"Hello, my dear. How are you?" She tilted her head at Mitch's words, causing him to frown.

"Nani?"

"Hmmm..... shame.... she's a cute one, too." Mitch jerked his head, causing the two expressionless scientists to come forward, grabbing her. He laughed as she began struggling against them.

"Mitch....." Jack glared at the mad brunette who turned, slapping his hand down on his shoulder.

"So, Jack, you gonna watch?"

---

"Well, so far so good," Claire whispered. They'd managed to break in without tripping any alarms. Strange, but that's what happened.

"Shhh.... you'll jinx us," Carlos said, a hint of amusement in his voice.

_'He's trying to lighten the mood. Cute.'_ Leon turned his attention back to what was going on as Chris stopped at a pair of double doors. A sudden series of screams caused the four to jump, their heartbeats increasing.

"Someone's awake."

"A few 'someone's,'" Claire corrected.

"Shhh...." Chris leaned towards the door a bit, though he didn't need to.

"Ow! She kicked me!"

"Grab her arm!"

"Mitch, hurry up with that syringe, will ya!!"

"Sounds like about five of them."

"Let me go in. As a decoy," Leon said, stepping up. "I'll divert their attention, so then you guys can jump 'em." After a short silence, Chris nodded briskly, moving aside.

"Not too long. We'll be right behind you." Walking over, Leon raised his 9mm Beretta, his training taking over.

_'To think, Leon, you could've been a cop,'_ he told himself. Shaking his head, he kicked the door in, gun raised. The room went quiet, all eyes turning toward the armed blonde. Chris appeared to have been right. There were two men trying to hold a young black/red-headed girl down on an operating table. There were two others behind them who had been arguing.

"Who the hell!?" one started.

_'Well, I got their attention.'_ One of the arguers pointed towards him, using his other hand to brush his brown bangs out of his eyes.

"Get him!" The other, who had blue eyes and black hair, protested.

"Mitch...."

"Shut up, Jack!" A high-pitched screech from behind Leon caused him to turn towards the doors just in time to get bashed across the head. His chest hit the ground hard, knocking the wind from him, but he was still conscious. The attacker stepped on his hand, forcing him to let go of his gun. After gaining his hand back, Leon rolled away about to get up when he found a gun barrel in his face. "Get up," the one named Mitch said. He did as he was told, feeling something warm drip down from his left temple. Apparently there were six people in the room and he was nice enough to Leon color to his face. Blood oozed from the wound, leaving a bloody path all down the left side of his face. "Well, well, now who are you, blondie?"

"What difference does it make? You'll probably kill me anyway." Leon glanced over to see that the scientists had succeeded in tying the girl down to the operating table. His gaze then fell upon his gun not too far away. Before Mitch could blink, Leon dropped down, doing a shoulder roll, and picking up him gun. Ending up on one knee, he aimed about to fire when a metallic hand, one that looked like it belonged to a metal skeleton, reached out from behind, clasping over his hand. Leon cried out in pain as the hand continued to clamp down, forcing him to lose his weapon once more.

"You gotta live one here, Mitch," came a deep voice from behind him. Leon craned his neck to see a large burly man with a goatee. His right arm was replaced with a mechanical one. 

"Thank you for that, Robert. Much appreciated."

"Bobby. It's Bobby."

"Uh... right. Stan, give me the syringe." One of the men who'd been holding down the girl came up with a syringe filled a green liquid. He was bald and wore huge coke-bottle glasses that made his head appear smaller than it was.

"Here you go, Mitch." Bobby hefted Leon up on his feet, all the while the blonde could feel the girl staring at him.

_'Probably thinks I'm the cavalry. Poor thing. And what the hell is this guy doing?'_

"Want to know what this is, blondie?"

"Leon...."

"What?"

"I have a name!" he snapped.

"Well then, _Leon_, this is a little something we call the G-Virus." A smile crossed his lips as he noticed his guest stiffen in Bobby's grip. "Hold him steady." Leon's eyes widen in fear and panic.

"What?! No!" The thought of becoming what had chased him down in the Raccoon labs made him feel sick to his stomach. He couldn't let that happen to himself. He'd come to far.

"Don't worry. It won't hurt... yet." Leon would've given almost anything at that moment just for a chance to knock the smirk off the lunatic. His eyes darted towards the doors for a moment in hope before looking back at the approaching madman.

_'Chris! Where are you guys!?'_

"Mitch...."

"I'm working, Jack, shut up."

"No! Please--" A loud crash drew their attention as Chris came crashing through the doors, sliding across the room. "Chris!" Without a word, Chris stood, aiming his Glock 17 handgun towards where he was and firing. There was a bloodthirsty screech followed by a wet thud.

"Bastard...." he muttered.

"Chris! Help me!" He looked over, seeing Mitch with the syringe. Chris raised his weapon towards him.

"Alright, you son of a bitch, I'm in no mood for games. Put that on the table behind you, gently," he growled in a low menacing voice. Leon just stared. Chris was clearly pissed.

"Do calm down, Mr. Redfield. Besides there is a lady present." Chris wasn't the least bit surprised that he knew his last name. For a few months now, Umbrella had been monitoring him, keeping their ever-watchful eye on him.

"Are you kidding!? You were going to infect her. What would you care?" Leon snapped. Mitch gave him a sideways glance before setting the syringe down.

"Okay, Mr. Redfield, I've done as you've said. Now what?" Chris was about to answer when a cry from Leon stopped him. Bobby had pulled Leon's arm behind him, twisting it. He then drew a dagger, settling it at the blonde's throat.

"Now we do what I say," Bobby said, his grin hidden in his beard.

"Chris......." He started backing up, dragging the blonde with him until he felt a gun barrel pressed against the side of his head.

"No, how 'bout we play 'Carlos says'?" With that, he pulled the trigger. Blood and brains everywhere. "Carlos says die."

---

TBC.....

Index:

Nani - What

Oh, yeah. How was that? My friend loves that part. Anyway, did you like it? I hope so. If any of you are confused about Saki, don't worry you'll learn more about her in the next chapter. And like I said if you want me to post a bio just tell me. Also, I don't know when I'll get them up but I'm going to draw scenes for the fic and post them on DevaintArt.com so look under Blue-eyed-Demon (that's me). Till then, do you see the pretty button at the bottom that says 'Submit Reviews'? Could you please use it and leave me a message after the beep........ *BEEP* 

Ja ne,

Hotaru Sasaki


	2. Kidnapped

A/N: Hey, here's chapter 2. I would like to make a note for 'someone' that.... no I didn't kill Leon and that he _is _blonde. I don't care what it is in RE4. I played RE2 first and that's what color his hair was. You don't need to mouth off with some proof that hasn't even come out yet when there are so many other games and pictures of him with him blonde.

For everyone else, sorry you had to wait so long for the next chapter but here it is and the next one will be up quicker. This will be so much easier when I get my own computer. For now, I'm using my parents comp. But right now I'd rather get a car so it'll still be awhile. ^_^

Resident Evil: Simply Murder

Chapter 2

The now decapitated body fell, the dagger clanging to the floor. Carlos circled around in front of Leon, tilting his head as he spoke.

"You oka--"

"Shh....shhh... my ears are still ringing," Leon whispered, closing his eyes a minute.

"_Lo siento._ But it was either you or him. What the hell happened to you?"

"I was -- what?" Carlos pointed to his forehead, reminding Leon of the blood still dripping down his face. "Oh, yeah. They loved me so much that they gave me a gift. A blow to the head with I don't know what," he replied flatly. Mitch wasn't liking this. He turned to grab the syringe only to find it missing.

"Looking for this?" Claire held it up, still training her gun on him. Scanning the room, he noticed that besides Jack he was the only other scientist left.

__

'Probably ran away scared after what happened to Bobby.' He was suddenly brought back to reality as he felt someone shove him harshly.

"Outta my way," Leon snapped. "Bastard......" Walking up to the table, he looked down at the frightened girl. "Hey, you okay?" he asked gently as he started to unstrap her.

"She doesn't speak English," Mitch said. Sitting up and hanging her legs over the side of the table, she smiled.

"Thank you. What's your name?" Mitch's eyes grew wide.

"You little bitch! You--"

"Leon. What's yours?"

"Saki."

"That's pretty.... Well, Saki, this is Chris and his sister, Claire and --"

"I'm Carlos. Pleasure to meet you," he said, kissing her hand. Both Chris and Leon rolled their eyes while Claire giggled. They were in a life or death situation and he was flirting. The others figured it was to calm some nerves.

"Who _are_ you people?" Leon turned slightly, training his Beretta towards Jack who flinched at the movement. "Hey, wait a sec. I had nothing to do with this."

"Who do you work for?"

"U-Umbrella...."

"Then you have everything to do with this! And _you_!" Leon looked over at Mitch. He suddenly stumbled a bit, rubbing his eyes as his vision went red. He was about to fall over when a pair of arms caught him, holding him steady. He looked up, meeting ruby eyes.

"Take it easy." Leon tilted his head.

"Saki..... you have..... red eyes...."

"Yeah?" His eyes rolled to the back of his head, the blood loss finally hitting.

"We need to get him out of here. Claire, Carlos." They looked over. "Find someplace for these two," he finished, referring to the scientists. Nodding, they started shoving them out of the room.

"Chris....."

"What is it, Leon?"

"What happened before to you guys?"

"Umbrella pets. Sorry we couldn't get in sooner," he replied with a sigh, " Anyway, let's get you some help."

"But....."

"Now what?"

"That information.... the disk we came for...." 

"You could ask one of those guys for what you're looking for," Saki cut in. There was a slight pause.

"Alright...... I'll be right back." He pulled a M93R handgun out, handing it to Saki [1]. "You know how to use this?"

"I'll learn." He nodded, looking down at Leon who was still leaning against Saki.

"I won't be long." He suddenly remembered that that was what he'd said to Leon before sending him in.

"Chris....... you okay?" He shook his head, grinning.

"Yeah," he then proceeded through the door Carlos and Claire had disappeared into just moments ago. _'That's right. You can have your guilt trip later.'_

---

Saki turned her attention back to her blonde knight in shining armor. Actually a black sweater and pants. But none the less he'd saved her.

"Here. Let me help you." She helped him up, getting him into a chair.

"What're you doing here?"

"Huh?"

"Why are you in a place like this?" he murmured. She frowned at his sudden lack of energy.

"Well, they arrested me. I was going to Raccoon to visit my relatives and ......"

"I'm sorry....." She paused, looking down at him, a confused expression on her face. Before he could add more, she spun around, finding a clean cloth. Getting down on her knees in front of him, she leaned over, cleaning his bloody face. He hissed, flinching away from her touch.

"Hold still. Now why are _you_ sorry?"

"Because Umbrella destroyed Raccoon...."

"I saw that...."

"Claire, a little girl, and myself were the only survivors." She pulled back a bit, biting her bottom lip, her gaze falling to the floor.

"I'd figured. As much... as I wanted to deny it..... I knew.... Arigato."

"What does that mean," he asked softly.

"Thank you." He flinched in pain as she started cleaning his face. When she pulled away again, he smiled.

"I'll remember that."

---

"So, this is the G-Virus. Do you think we should give this to ----"

"No way! He'll probably sell it," Carlos interjected.

"Why would he do that?" He sighed, looking up at Claire.

"I don't know. And that's exactly why..... I don't know anything about him."

"Oh, and you think I do. I know just about ----"

"Carlos! Claire!" They looked towards the door. 

"Chris?"

"Hey, you guys okay?" He asked. walking in.

"Yeah."

"We're fine. Mitch isn't happy, though." Carlos pointed over to the two hostages who were bound together. "Jack doesn't seem to care." Chris walked over, glaring down at Mitch.

"Okay, I'm gonna ask this once: Where's the information based on the G-Virus and its antidote?" Mitch scoffed.

"You actually think I'd tell you?" Chris drew his handgun.

"Yeah." He looked away, clearly refusing. "What about you?" Chris kicked Jack lightly, gaining his attention.

"I'm just the programmer. He's in charge of that division. He's the only one with the information you're looking for. I'm sorry." Mitch grinned in his triumph.

"Joy....." Carlos muttered. Suddenly, the automatic door slid closed, locking.

"What the---" Claire ran over, slamming against the door.  
"Leon!!!"

"We're trapped!" Chris looked around, seeing that Carlos was right.

"Damn....." There was a sudden hissing as a thin smoke filled the room. "Knock-out gas!"

---

Saki had managed to find a first aid kit, bandaging Leon's wound.

"There. How does that feel?"

"Better. Arigato." She smiled. Leon reached up, feeling his new 'head band.' "That hurt like a bitch...."

"Where do --" She stopped as a red light in the top corner of the room began blinking.

"Oh, no. Chris." Leon rose, heading for the door Chris had disappeared into just moments ago. He suddenly heard a chamber being rounded. Looking over, he saw Saki with the M93R Chris had given her.

"I'm going with you." Nodding, Leon drew his gun, opening the door. It led to a desert hallway. Stepping forward, Leon motioned for Saki to follow.

"Chris?" His voice bounced off the hollow walls, traveling all the way down. There were only two other doors in the hallway. One at the very end and another to the right near the middle. "Which one?"

"Your choice." He walked up to the closest, jiggling the handle.

"No good." The one at the end was automatic, making a slight hum as it slid open. The cramped room was littered with loose papers. Near the back were some ropes and a gold flip lighter. "Claire's lighter!" He ran over, picking it up. "Damn......"

"What happened?"

"I don't know.... They're ....gone....." He stood still staring at the golden trinket.

"So what do we do now?"

"Find them. Let's go."

"But there's nowhere _to_ go." She watched as Leon waltzed down the hall and kicked the door in. Wasn't locked anymore.

"Now there is. Come on." Through the door they found a small flight of stairs leading to a door at the top. "Ready?" He asked, reaching the top. At Saki's nod he opened the door, sweeping his weapon across, searching. They came into an open room as big as a school gym and just as empty.

"Weird...."

"Yeah.... there." He pointed to a door to the right.

"There's a door over there and there as well."

"So? Which one?" She shrugged, closing the door behind her. She then watched as Leon's gaze shifted from her to something behind her.

"Wh- What? What is it?"

"Look...." She spun around to see a large red bird with a long tail carved on the door. Walking over, she glided her hand down as if mesmerized.

"Wow...."

"What is it?"

"Suzaku." He tilted his head, his brow creasing.

"English, please."

"Phoenix. In Japan, there is a legend of four gods who protected the land. Suzaku, the red Phoenix, Seiyruu, the blue dragon, Genbu, the black tortoise/serpent, and Byakko, the white tiger." He looked around the room.

"Well, there's your turtle, tiger, and dragon, but what do they mean?"

"The directions on a compose. North, South, East, and West. Suzaku is South."

"So which one do we take?" She shook her head, her red streaked, black hair flailing. "Okay, let's see." He looked around the wide room, lighting flashing through the giant skylight. "Let's just go counterclockwise. Seiyruu."

"Okay." Reaching the door decorated with the blue dragon. Leon grabbed the knob. Opening the door, they scanned for movement. What they walked into seemed more like an aquarium. A canopy of glass kept the sea life on the other side, seeming as if it wasn't there to begin with. "I always thought that these things would break and that the sharks would come through."

"Really? Me, too," Leon said, giving her a small smile. The glass hallway stretched what looked like 50 meters and at the end was another door. They began walking until a shadow cast over them. Saki shrieked, clinging to Leon who she startled.

"I hate sharks." He watched as the great beast swam away before looking down at her, still clinging to his shirt. Wrapping his arms around her shoulders, he gently rested his forehead against her head.

"Hey, shhh..... it's okay." Pulling away a bit, he lifted her chin. "It's gone now. Okay."

"You won't leave me, ne?"

"Wh -- no. No, I won't leave you," he said, hugging her again.

"Yakusoku?" Her voice was muffled. She looked up at him, translating. "Promise?"

"I promise. Now, you ready? As soon as we find the others we'll leave." She nodded, pulling away.

"Okay."

"Come on, Saki."

---

"Where is everyone?" Wesker stared at the security screens bored out of his mind. "It hasn't been fun since I got rid of Redfield." Albert Wesker, ex-Captain of the S.T.A.R.S. Special Forces was presently in the Ocean facility security room in the Seiyruu section. Leaning back in his leather roller chair, he propped his feet up on the ledge in front of him. The only source of light were from the 4x4 wall of screens. Though the room was dark, he still wore his sunglasses, hiding his red-gold eyes. He sighed, his eyes shifting to each screen. "Damn.... there's nothi --" He suddenly leaned up, becoming interested in one of the lower screens. A smile graced his lips. "Well, well, what do we have here?" He watched as a young man and girl opened the end-hall aquarium door, entering the shark room. "Well, looks like there's something to do after all. Here I come."

---

TBC....

Index:

1. The M39R is the same model Claire used in RE: Code Veronica

A/N: Mwhahahahahaha! *Ahem* I'm done. So what do you think? Like? I hope so.... The next chapter will go up soon... if I'm motivated to. So you can do me the favor of leaving me a nice note. ^_^ It's helps me write. So use the pretty button and review please.

Ja ne,

Hotaru Sasaki


	3. Up For A Swim?

A/N: Chapter 3 is here! Thank you, reviewers! Okay, okay, another one said that he wasn't blonde but he isn't a brunette either, me and my friends looked up some cutscene clips from RE2 and say it looks red but I'm gonna keep it blonde. Okay? Sorry. *shrug* Anyway, here we go.....

Resident Evil: Simply Murder

Chapter 3

With a groan, Chris opened his eyes. Getting to his feet, he looked around, taking in his surroundings. They were in a prison cell. A barred window on the far wall let in the moonlight and there was a bunk set in the corner which looked like someone had operated on it. Slashes and blood stained the pillow and sheets, causing Chris to shiver a bit. The air was stale and a bit of squeaking of rats or mice could be heard. Though still dizzy, he leaned down, shaking Claire.

"Chris...." He looked over, seeing Carlos rubbing his head.

"Hey, how you feeling?"

"Dizzy." Claire leaned up at this point.

"Me, too. Where are we?"

"A prison cell. Still, its a good thing we're still together. But they disarmed us of _everything_."

"Even the lock pick?" Chris checked his vest breast pocket.

"Yeah...."

"Damn...." Carlos muttered. "Well, now what?" Chris bit his lower lip, shaking his head.

"Ah, good morning. How are you all feeling?" They all turned to see Mitch's smug face. "I do hope you're all comfortable. Being my new guests and all." As he spoke, he walked towards them, stopping about two feet away from the bars. "Oh, yes. And don't worry. We'll take good care of _Leon_ for you." Chris waltzed up, grasping at the bars.

"What're you going to do?" Mitch held something up, looking past Chris at Claire.

"Thank you for returning this. I'm going to need it to finish what I started before." Her eyes grew wide, seeing the syringe.

"What is that stuff?" Carlos demanded.

"A masterpiece! This is a sample of the G-Virus. The amplified version of the T-Virus. I've made my own modifications to this and need to test it." There was silence. The trio staring at the crazed scientist who held their friend's fate in his hands.

"Why?" Came Claire's quiet voice.

"Why what? Why do this? Because I can! That's the beauty of it!" He gave a short cackle, further proving his insanity. "Well, Leon's waiting. I wouldn't want to keep him." He then turned, climbed up the few stairs and went out the door.

"No, wait!" The loud thud of the door was Chris' only response. A few minutes passed by, the three just staring at the man's retreat until a quiet voice broke the awkward silence.

"Is he gone?" From the corner of the room, emerging from the shadows came --

-- Jack.

"What're _you_ doing here?" He walked over to the lock, pulling out a key and opening the cell.

"That." Chris carefully walked out, eyeing him.

"Why?"

"I told your friend, Leon, I have nothing to do with this. And Mitch..... the man is insane....." He reached into his lab coat, pulling out a key. "Here."

"What's this?" Claire peered over her brother's shoulder down at the rusted key.

"Right out that door and pretty much across the hall is a room where they put your stuff. That will open it and --"

"Why are you doing this?" He held up his hands defensively.

"I already told you. This whole thing is insane and has to stop. When they hired me I had no idea about making any viruses or serums. I _am _just the programmer, you know. Now go. Before they find out."

"I like this guy...." Carlos said, smiling.

"What about you? Come with us." Claire watched as he took a deep breath, exhaling it slowly. Nerves.

"I'm going to prevent Mitch from finding out as long as I can. Just go. Don't worry about me."

"Thank you."

"Yes, thank you," Claire said, giving him a peck on the cheek. Carlos patted his shoulder, giving him a small grin.

"Give 'em hell, _amigo_." He nodded to each, watching them leave.

---

A small shriek escaped Saki's lips as she realized what was in the giant tank in the middle of the room. They'd entered a large circular room with two levels, the second level being a steel platform that circled the entire room. Two ladders on either side led up and there was one door on the second level. One other door on the lower floor was on the opposite side.

"Holy shit....." Leon whispered, staring into the clear tank at the giant great white. "That thing is _huge_. Must be -- I don't know -- about half the size of a bus. Maybe bigger."

"Can we stop admiring it and leave?" Leon looked back, seeing her inch away.  
"Yeah, sorry. Let's go." She went next to him as they walked around. As the shark rounded into view again she grabbed his hand, looking for comfort.

"Well, isn't this cute...." Freezing, Leon freed his hand and spun, earning a back hand that sent him flying into the glass wall, hearing it crack.

"Leon!" A boot came into his view. Looking up slowly, he can face-to-face with a tall man with blonde hair and a pair of shades. He crouched down, becoming level with Leon's face. A small grin was on his features.

"I take it you're Leon?" The man's grin turned into a smile as Leon felt something warm on his lip. Bringing his hand up, he discovered that his lower lip was cracked, blood dripping.

"Who are you?" The man looked to be in his mid- maybe late-30s. His eyes, though hidden, were searching him.

"Wesker. Albert Wesker..... ex-"

"Ex-Captain of the S.T.A.R.S. unit!" Leon finished getting to feet, eyes wide. Wesker glared, getting up as well.

"How do you know that?"

"Chris --" Before he could finish, let alone blink, Wesker grabbed his throat, slamming him against the glass, breaking it further.

"What about Chris?" He hissed, showing Leon just how much he loathed Redfield. "He's alive?!"

"O-of course h-he is," Leon choked, attempting to gasp for breathe. He was suddenly dropped as Saki hit Wesker over the head with the butt of her handgun, pissing him off more than hurting him.

"Hello, dear. Is there something you wanted?" He went to hit her but she dodged, grabbing his arm and flipping him over her shoulder. On his feet almost immediately, Wesker attempted another hit. Saki, however, landed a blow to his gut, then turned, slamming her shoulder and back into him. Balancing himself, Wesker tried another blow but she back flipped out of the way. He growled in frustration as she took a stance.

"Watashi wa Saki. Kore wa T'ai Chi Quan." [1] 

"I don't know what the hell you said," he opened the door they were heading for, "but you just signed your death certificate." With that, he drew his handgun, fired into the tank, and exited through the door, locking it. Water began coming through, the glass giving. After a quick glance around, Leon spotted the ladder.

"Saki." Her head snapped in his direction, worry clouding her eyes. This was different for him, though. He was kind of used to this and besides, he was a trained cop. He knew how to deal with pressure. He pointed towards their new destination. "Come on!" They both raced towards the ladder, Saki giving a small squeak as Leon lifted her up by her waist, helping her grab the rungs considering her 5' 2" frame. Once she was up, Leon jumped up, grabbing the bottom rung, grunting as his fingers suddenly had to hold up his body weight.

Meanwhile, the glass gave, all its contents flooding the room, including the shark.

"Leon! Hurry!" Finally able to use his feet, he scaled the rest, collapsing on the floor when he got up. "You okay?" He nodded, still breathing hard. Down below, the shark explored its new territory, unaware of Saki's frightful gaze. She couldn't take her eyes off of it as swam around, under them, and around again.. Leon looked down through the grated floor at the great beast in its watery home, thanking God that he or Saki weren't down there. Getting to his feet, he looked over at Saki whose gaze hadn't been broken.

"Saki?"

"Can we leave?" He took a deep breath.

"Yeah."

"Leon? I'm afraid to move....." He came up from behind her, grabbing her from around her waist. He looked down, seeing her knuckles white from gripping the rail too hard. She then put one of her hands over his clasped ones. At this, Leon could feel his face burn up.

_'No! Don't get attached! Wait till this is over! Something ALWAYS happens when you're attached!!! Come on, Leon, keep your hormones in check, for chrissake!'_ Telling himself that wasn't working, though. He was quickly falling for the girl. She must have been about two years younger then he was at least. Just like Claire. _'Claire.... We have to go. We have to find them.'_

"Leon?" He shook his head, blinking repeatedly.

"Y-yes?"

"Let's get out of here." He nodded, pulling her away from the edge. As they turned to leave, a voice stopped them in their tracks.

"_Nobody's_ going anywhere unless**_ I_** say so!" 

"Wesker!!" Leon suddenly felt like he was hit by a truck as Wesker's fist connected with his stomach. At this, he doubled over, gasping for air. A small grin played on Wesker's lips.

"How 'bout a swim? You didn't get a chance to meet my friend down there," he sneered, shoving Leon over the railing.

"Leon!!!" Wesker grabbed Saki around the waist, hoisting her over his shoulder. 

"You are coming with me."

"Kisama!!" [2] She tried pulling his hair and when that didn't work she elbowed him in the back of the neck, causing him to drop her.

"You bitch!" Obviously not out, he drew his handgun, aimed, and fired.

---

Leon hit the water, immediately going for the surface. His stomach was sore and had butterflies at the thought that that shark could come up and take his life at any given moment. Trent had said that they were testing on marine life and he didn't want to find out what might have happened to this specimen. Looking around as best he could, he spotted the opposite ladder that was now closer. Without many options and feeling something brush by his left leg, Leon started a mad dash towards the ladder. From above he heard Saki scream some Japanese word which by her tone could only be a curse and Wesker.

"You bitch!" As he reached his destination, he heard a gunshot.

_'No!'_ It was then that Leon noticed the shark was about to charge at him. Racing up the ladder as best he could, the shark missed him by a hair. _'That bastard's gonna get it now."_ As he reached the top, he unholstered his Beretta, his hair dripping. Aiming it downward, he walked around, seeing Saki on the ground holding her right side. Upon hearing his boots against the metal flooring, she looked up, relief washing over her.

"L-Leon..... you're okay...." Holstering his weapon, he ran up, kneeling at her side.

"Saki, I heard---"

"It just scratched me. I'll be fine," she interjected. "Just a little blood...."

"So... he ran off?" He pushed his wet bangs aside, wiping the rest of the water droplets from his face.

"Yeah.... through that door... he got some call on his radio....."

"Well, he certainly didn't go down there," he said sarcastically. She looked up at him, taking his hand.

"You're okay? I thought you --"

"I made a promise..... I _intend_ to keep it." He rose, helping her up. "Now. Are you _sure_ you're okay?"

"Just a little blood and a nervous breakdown.... I'll be fine." He chuckled, closing the gap between them.

"Well, let me take a look." Lifting her shirt a bit, he could see a streak of blood. "Certainly could've been worse," he said softly, looking up at her. "If you're sure you're fine how 'bout we get out of here."

"_Way_ ahead of you." She turned going through the door Wesker had disappeared into. Being the only door now they had no choice but to chance running into the ex-captain again. Laughing at her determination, Leon took one last glance at the creature that could've ended it for him before following.

---

"I feel terrible! We should be taking Jack with us," Claire whined. Chris didn't like it either. The man was risking his life for people he didn't even know.

"Don't worry, Claire. I'm sure he can take care of himself," Carlos reassured. They had gone to the room Jack had told them about, gaining their weapons back and more. Among more clips, Chris and Carlos now each had a Remington shotgun. Claire had also found a map, making their search for Leon and the girl a little easier. 

"In any case, we have to find Mitch or Leon before its too late." At saying this, Chris shot a worried glance at Claire, remembering that similar thing had happened to young Steve Burnside in Antarctica. A crazed woman by the name of Alexia Ashford had kidnapped, infected, and used him to kill Claire. He died trying to save her from himself. However, an organization similar to Umbrella to which Wesker had said he worked for took him for testing of Alexia's T-Veronica Virus.

"Chris...." Her voice broke him from his daze.

"Yeah, Claire?"

"I'm _not_ going to let it happen again. Not to Leon." He nodded, wrapping his arm around her shoulders as they continued walking. She rested her head on his shoulder, feeling him kiss her forehead.

"We won't, Claire. Don't worry."

"I suddenly don't feel loved..." Carlos murmured. Claire laughed, freeing herself from her older brother and moving back, grasping onto Carlos' muscular arm.

"Aww.... I'm sorry, Carlos."

"It's okay," he said softly. He suddenly jerked his head up, pushing Claire into an open doorway.

"Ca--" There was a hollow crash.

"Chris, get down!!" Carlos dove, dragging Chris down in time as a giant claw swept across carving into the wall where Chris had just stood. A slight growl was all the two needed to their feet. Chris unstrapped his Remington, turning to see a familiar creature.

"No......" Narrowing his eyes, he unloaded two shots, watching the Hunter recoil at the hits. It hit the ground with a wet thud, twitching a bit before finally dying. Blood pooled around it's still form, the red liquid's smell filling the air. "H-he... he's here..."

"Chris.....?"

"I thought he was dead....." Carlos grabbed his shoulders, shaking him slightly.

"Chris!" He saw his eyes focus, a sign he was now back on Earth.

"Wesker's alive," he breathed. "I thought he was dead..... again. That man just won't die..." A small, feminine groan sounded, making Carlos' face flush.

"Oops.... Claire?"

"Right where you threw me." He walked over the dead nightmare into the room she was in. It was very dim and was filled with boxes. Mostly they had Biohazards signs on them. And there, in the closest pile of boxes was Claire. Thankfully, the ones she landed on were empty.

"_Lo seinto._ You okay?"

"What the hell happened?!" she demanded. Chris appeared in the doorway.

"Claire...." She looked over, seeing how upset he was.

"What's wrong?"

"Wesker's alive. He survived the explosion at Antarctica and he's here." Getting to her feet, she dusted herself off.

"Your old Captain, right?"

"The one who double-crossed us. Yeah...."

"I met him...."

"Okay. Claire, you're okay. Can we _walk_ and talk? I don't want to run into more of those things," Carlos cut in.

"I don't care about the Hunters. It's who sent them that I'm worried about."

"Either case: let's get outta here," Claire interrupted, pulling both their arms.

---

After going through the door, Leon and Saki came to a two-way. As much as he didn't want to go left for personal reasons [3], they'd heard voices and didn't want to chance running into any security. They now entered a room that was mostly a giant pool. Looking through the water, they saw the hallway they had been through before. Both paths on either side were blocked, leaving the center path open.

"Somebody doesn't like me...." Saki groaned.

"It's not me..." They started walking across with no problem but as they reached the other side, the automatic doors slid open revealing several people either didn't want to see.

"Ah! Leon!"

"Mitch! Saki, run!" Leon drew his Beretta only to have it shot from his hand by one of the two soldiers accompanying the scientist. The gun slid across the catwalk and out of his reach.

"Don't move!" one commanded. From behind, Leon heard a small clanking and then bullets came flying past, nailing one soldier. He clutched his chest, falling forward into the water. Just as he hit, with lightening speed, a pair of powerful jaws came up, the shark dragging the man under, blood billowing.

"Leon! Come on!" The second soldier what looked like a sniper rifle but Leon's brain registered otherwise.

_'Tranq gun!'_ He fired once, Saki hitting the floor. _'Saki!'_

"I suggest you don't move," Mitch said, walking past. He stopped by the fallen girl, feeling Leon's deadly gaze on him. "Now are you going to come quietly or..... is Saki going for a swim?"

"You wouldn't."

"You don't know that." A smile crossed his lips as he heard Leon growl deep in his throat. His eyes darted between Saki and Mitch before finally relaxing, showing he was surrendering. "I knew you'd see things my way...."

"Cheap bastard...." Mitch ignored his murmuring.

"Restrain him." Leon felt his arms grabbed, handcuffs being slapped on.

_'The cop's being arrested. Smooth.'_ Mitch leaned down, retrieving the handguns.

"Sleep tight, sweet," he said, following the soldier and Leon out the door they'd come through, leaving Saki behind.

---

"This hallway goes on forever. The only other door was to that room filled with water."

"And did you see the size of that shark?!" Claire shivered as Carlos spoke. The trio stopped as they heard gunfire up ahead.

"Leon?" Chris shrugged

"Only one way to find out." They broke into a run, their steps echoing through the empty hall. They came up to a small turn before seeing a pair of double doors. After listening for anything, Chris entered first with Claire following, Carlos trailing. It was a large pool room with a center catwalk, the side ones blocked by debris and equipment. Blood was lingering one the water's surface which hid what was beneath.

"Hey, it's that girl," Carlos said, running over and turning her onto her back. He noticed a small dart sticking out of her side and removed it, throwing it in the water. As soon as it hit, the shark dove up, hoping to score another meal. "Holy--- !!!" Carlos fell back, dragging Saki with him.

"That was fast."

"A little too fast. Must be some results from those experiments we heard about from Trent," Chris muttered. He looked down at his companion. "Carlos?"

"I'm okay. I'm good.... awake now...." He looked down, the girl in his lap. Chris crouched down next to him.

"Her name's Saki, right?" Claire walked up behind them.

"I think so, but where's Leon? He was with her."

"You guys don't think....." Carlos pointed to the water, the blood thinning.

"No! Don't even think that."

"I know Leon. He's got to be alive," Claire whispered, a pang of certainty in her voice. A groan from Saki drew their attention.

"Leon......" Her eyes fluttered open, Carlos in view. Startled, she screamed, causing him to grab her and clamp his hand over her mouth. A glimpse of the shark's fin went by.

"Shhh.... it's okay. We're your friends, remember?" He let go of her as she calmed down. She nodded, looking around the room.

"W-where's Leon?"

"We were going to ask you," Chris said gently. She stood, pacing.

"Mitch. He was here."

"Mitch? That _loco_ scientist?"

"He was here with some men and they attacked us and ...... and ...." Chris came up, grabbing her shoulders.

"Hey, calm down."

"It's my fault...." He glared at her.

"No."

"Wh--"

"This is Mitch's fault, Umbrella's but it _is not_ your fault."

"But he's gone...... I could've stopped them..." She looked the other way only to have Chris force her to look at him by grabbing her chin.

"Don't put this on yourself. Now we can either sit here and blame ourselves or we can find Leon before its too late." He pulled away, looking across at the other door.

"Too late? Too late for wh----"

"And we're off, _amigos!_" Carlos cut in. The shark surfaced a bit before going under. "That thing has like sensitive hearing or something. It's freaking me out."

"You and me both," Claire muttered.

"Let's get going. The longer we stand here, the further they get away." 

"Sir, yes, sir." Chris rolled his eyes, grinning.

"Carlos? Can I hit you?"

"No, sir." The girls giggled a bit. 

_'Don't worry, Leon, we're coming.' _They started across the catwalk.

---

TBC.....

Index:

1. I am Saki. This is T'ai Chi Quan style.

2. I'm not sure at the moment what it means _exactly_ because some translators sometimes put in a curse or 'Why, you....' for that. Either way.....

3. In book three, City of the Dead (RE game 2), Leon is still trapped in the lab hallways while Claire and Sherry are getting the train ready. He comes to a two way and after thinking that most people pick the side that they write with he went the opposite, left and it turned out to be wrong. Later in book 4, he mentions his mistake again to himself.

And that would be chapter 3. ^_^ Not as long as I thought it would turn out but you shouldn't make it too long otherwise a person might lose interest. Anyway, tell me what you think and if you want me to continue. I do this for you. Also, if you want to check out some of my artwork go to www.blue-eyed-demon.deviantart.com . It's an art site kind of like FF.net but you put up artwork. DeviantArt.com is amazing. You should also check out Kache of Time (one word - they don't want spaces). 

Oh, and I also wanted to note because there is probably a few of you going 'how' about Saki was able to fight Wesker. If you know his whole scenario then you know he has a virus and faked his death and is now a sort of super human. You may be asking how is a little thing like Saki is blocking his punches. Well, she knows the art of T'ai Chi Quan which even though she's Japanese is a Chinese art. I'm just going to give you a short run-down - T'ai Chi Quan is popular in Japan and the U.S. as a physical exercise but its main reason is for combat. It's a method involving the guidance of chi and doesn't rely heavily on muscle. It needs the proper form to work and takes a long time to master.

Well, the next chapter will be up hopefully soon. I hope to get a good amount of reviews before adding more but we'll see. Till then....

Ja ne,

Hotaru Sasaki


	4. The Virus

A/N: And then, ladies and gentlemen, there was chapter 4..... Sorry about it taking so long but I hope that those of you who were reading it from the start or even those who've recently found it continue to read it and review. I would like to say as I think I did in the first chapter, Saki, Jack and Mitch are characters I made up and therefore belong to me but all others are not. (I wish) And for those of you who were complaining that Leon's not blonde, sorry but I'm not gonna change it. -_- Please just work with me.  And Carlos and Claire are NOT going to be a couple… I actually hate Claire but I needed her in this because of her knowledge about Alexia Ashford….          Enjoy.....

_'Thoughts'_

_:Journal entries_ (they'll mention if its an entry)

Resident Evil: Simply Murder

Chapter 4

"This sucks," Leon murmured, lightly banging his head against the bars of his new cell. He took a deep breath, exhaling slowly.

"To be you. Damn straight." Leon looked up, seeing the guard leaning against the wall near the door, a set of keys on his hip. "You better start praying that the pain doesn't last too long." It was the same guy who'd shot Saki.

"What're you talking about?"

"Don't you know? They were looking for _you_. Mitch mentioned that he wanted to use you in his experiments now." Leon paled.

"W-what?" He was suddenly having a hard time breathing. His head was still throbbing from his blow to the head, the bandage drenched in blood. He gripped the bars tight, leaning his head against them, closing his eyes. "No......"

"Then he's probably going to send you loose after your friends." Leon clenched his eyes shut tighter, fighting off his nausea.

_'No! They can't. They won't...... I can't let them. I've come too far.'_ William Birkin's monster down in the old Umbrella labs flashed through his mind. A memory that he had tried hard to forget. _'I have to get away. I promised Saki.....'_

"You can keep denying it, but I don't see what you can do about it, pretty boy." Leon looked up at him, giving him a death glare. Pushing off the bars, he turned, running his hands through his hair in frustration. He stiffened a bit as he heard a small jingle of keys. He looked over seeing that the man was just shifting his weight. "Hm? Oh, what? You want these?" He unhooked the keys, slowly walking forward. He smirked as Leon came closer to the bars. "You are going to die here and there's nothing you can do about --" He hadn't quite kept his distance as Leon grabbed his shirt pulling him forward.

"Give me the keys."

"You wish." He pulled his arm back so that he couldn't reach.

"I'm getting out of here. They are not going to do _anything_ to me. I'll stop them." The guard suddenly felt the keys being taken from his hand.

"Stop what? A miracle." Leon's eyes darted , seeing Mitch with that horrible grin.... and the keys. Growling, he looked back at the guard before slamming the man's head against the bars, effectively knocking him out.

"That's for Saki..." he murmured. Mitch just looked from the guard back to his captive as if nothing happened.

"I heard you had met out first command, Albert Wesker." The said person walked in, sans his usual shades. Leon's blue eyes widened, fear clearly clouding them.

"Y-your eyes!" Wesker grinned, walking over and taking the keys from Mitch. As he unlocked the cell, Leon backed away, obviously stopping once he hit the wall. All he could do was stare into those eyes that he swore would give him nightmares for weeks..... if he had that long. With lightening speed, Wesker's hand came up, grasping onto Leon's neck.

"Guess what, Leon? It's time for your medication." He tried to speak but couldn't, lack of oxygen hitting him hard. He could barely register that Mitch now had his arm, rolling up his sleeve. As he did, he struggled helplessly as Mitch finally inserted the syringe into his vein.

"No....." Birkin's monster flashed through his mind. He suddenly wished it had killed him. As the reality of what was happening hit, tears formed, streaking down his face. "Stop....."

"Got you," Mitch said, trying to suppress his excitement. Wesker dropped him, watching him fall to his knees. Leon immediately doubled over, tears hitting the cement floor.

"So? How long?"

"I don't know. Shouldn't be too long," Mitch said, crouching down. Upon seeing him in his view, Leon shoved him,

"Get away from me!"

"You're in no position to be raising your voice."

"What are you gonna do? Kill me? Go ahead! Finish the job...." He looked down at his arm seeing thin streams of blood. "Oh, God....." Mitch stood, dusting himself off.

"It will consume him soon. Though what it will do, I'm not sure. I'm not exactly sure about the changes I've made. I hope its improved."

"Oh? Changing Birkin's work, eh?" Mitch turned toward him, slamming his hands in his lab coat pockets. 

"Damn straight! I need some credit in this. Now if I did this right he shouldn't really change. It's more like enhancing. Birkin made it so that those infected would become dead, zombie-like beings with a sort of intent to feed. To kill. I'm hoping that I can make some sort of super army with this 'virus' if that's what you want to call it. They should have heightened senses, strength, and above all: no will of their own. They will listen to their....," he placed his hands on his chest, indicating himself, ".....master."

"Kill me....." Mitch spun, looking down at the boy.

"Hell, no! You've just become my most precious possession and I intend on taking good care of you." Still kneeling, Leon hugged his stomach, groaning in pain, his head drooping. Wesker crouched down next to him, grabbing his shoulder when Leon caught him off guard, swinging his arm. His fist landed square in his chest, sending him flying against the wall. Wide eyed, Leon stared at his hand, then grabbed his stomach as another wave of pain surged through.

"Son of a bitch....," Wesker mumbled, getting to his feet. "You won't be able to do that again, little punk." His eyes darted over as Leon starting screaming, grabbing his head. When he looked up he immediately glared at Mitch whose eyes widened.

"Amazing..." Leon stood, stumbling over as Mitch raced out of the cell. He reached the bars, clinging to them for support. His now blood red eyes glazed over in rage.

"I'll kill you. I swear I'll kill you," he growled, his voice low and menacing. Mitch watched as Leon's eyes became slit like Wesker's. He then growled, sounding a bit like an animal. A bloodthirsty tiger.

"What was that stuff? Steroids?"

_'This is incredible...... I'm going to be rich. To think how many nations are going to want this stuff.'_ Mitch noticed that Leon wasn't attempting to reach for him anymore. Cautiously, he took a step closer.

"Mitch.... What are you doing?"

"Leon?" He looked up upon hearing his name. "Hmmm... so far so good. I wonder.... Wesker, those photos." Wesker pulled out small security photos from his breast pocket, handing them to the scientist. "Leon, see these people? I want you to go and hunt them down. Search and destroy. Understand?" He looked up from the photos at Mitch before he turned and left the room. "Uhhh... well, that went well. Wesker, I want you to follow him." He sighed.

"Fine. I'd rather have killed Redfield myself but I guess watching is fun too," he said, retreating.

"Now the fun begins." Mitch smiled, looking down at the photo of Chris and the others. He pulled out his lighter, burning it. "Then I'll just have to get rid of you next, Wesker. Traitorous bastard."

---

After hearing a male screaming, the four tried to see where it would lead only ending up with a dead-end. They hoped to catch up to Mitch and the others but found them long gone and now they were wandering aimlessly down the long, empty halls.

"That scream before..... it was Leon. I know it," Saki whispered, biting her lower lip.

"He'll be fine. We'll find him."

_'And what if he isn't, Chris? Then what? Find him dead? I'll kill myself if anything happens to him..... I... what's wrong with me.... Come on, Saki. You just met him....'_ She thought back to when he'd tried to calm her down in the aquarium hallway_. 'He _is _really sweet. And cute.... Ack! What the hell am I thinking?! I might never see him again.... I could've saved him.... but that stupid man with his tranqs.'_

"Hey, Chris, look what I found," Carlos said, pushing open a door. The office was dark but neat so there wasn't anything to trip over. Flipping the light switch, Carlos holstered his gun, walking up and searching the desk for anything useful.

"Anything?" Claire asked. She walked up next to him, reading the gold plaque. "Mitch Wagner."

"Well, well, looks like that disk might be here. Carlos, you and Claire will stay here and search. Saki and I will continue looking for Leon. Stay here. We'll be back."

"Got it, bro."

"Roger." 

"Ready to go? ....Saki?" He looked over, finding her missing. Racing out into the hallway, he found her leaning against the wall near the door. "Saki..... don't do that. You scared me. You okay?" She nodded. "Okay, then let's go."

"About time. If anything happens---"

"Grown attached, haven't we?" She stopped talking, turning red.

"Well, yeah, I guess I have. He saved me..... a few times... He's so sweet and _really _cute." He laughed, feeling good about having a bit of a 'normal' conversation. 

"Yeah, he's nice. Determined and too young to be mixed up in something like this. Like you and my sister. But I guess as much as I don't want admit it, you both have to fight now. Getting killed is the only other option. Life isn't going to be normal for you anymore."

"Who said it was normal to begin with." 

"Oh, yeah?" She laughed a bit.

"Never mind." He laughed a bit himself, pausing when Saki suddenly stopped short.

"Saki?" 

"Doesn't it feel like we're being watched?" She scanned the hall a bit as she spoke.

"Being watched?" She nodded. "A little. Hurry up." They started jogging down the rest of the hall, unaware of the pair of red eyes watching from the shadows. Red orbs gleaming, thirsting to spill blood. The figure then followed, hot on their trail.

---

"There has to be something here? Anything on the computer?" 

"Nothing really yet. It's just been a few journal entries so far," Claire answered. "Hey, listen to this one:

_I finally finished it. After spending weeks tampering with Birkin's work, I'm finally done. Too bad there's no way to test it. Jack doesn't want me to use any marine life saying that it might escape or something. Maybe I should test it on him. He's so --- so ---- Ugh! I hate that goody-two shoed bastard. He ruins everything. If he wasn't so damn useful I'd have killed him a long time ago. However, I just heard that the clean-up crew had brought in someone from Raccoon who'd arrived about an hour into their work. This is perfect. Jack isn't going to stop me this time. He's just the damn programmer! I shouldn't have to listen to him._"

"Sounds like he's talking about Saki," Carlos cut in. 

"Yeah, well, that's about it. Oh, wait!" There was a bit of clicking till a file saying 'G-Tyrant Virus' came up. "Bingo."

"Alright, Claire," he came up, looking over her shoulder.

"I know. You love me. Now let's see what we have here."

---

Entering a small study, Chris closed the door behind them. Looking around, there was a small desk, some shelves loaded with books on chemistry and marine life, and a side table which held a small lamp, its soft light illuminating the room. Also on the desk was another lamp along with some books and loose papers.

"There's no other way out of here," Saki said, walking in further. "I hope nothing was following us." 

"Yeah...." A sudden knocking caught their attention. Chris motioned for Saki to stay quiet.

"Chris..... Are you in there?" Their eyes widened as they exchanged shocked glances. 

"L-Leon?" He opened the door, catching Leon as he fell in. His sweater was gone, leaving him with a slightly torn, tight black T-shirt. Numerous marks were on his arms and chest, blood dripping. "Leon! Hey, what happened? Who did this to you?" He looked up, letting Chris see his eyes for the first time, a small grin on his face. Chris let go, backing up near Saki.

"I did." He leaned down, pulling a dagger from his ankle sheath. "It's the only way to be sure I'm alive anymore." He unconsciously traced the dragon design on the handle.

"Leon.... what... Mitch did this to you, didn't he?!" He looked up at her, seeing her eyes clouded in fury and sorrow.

"Master told me to kill you," he watched as they tensed. Putting his hand behind his back, he locked the door, then with a deadly gaze, he slowly began to walk toward them. "Time to say good-bye."  
"Leon, no!" Saki screamed as he dove at Chris, dagger raised. Knocking the weapon loose, hearing it clang to the floor, Chris was slammed down with Leon on top. Grasping his throat, Leon slammed Chris' head against the floor, choking him. Racing over, Saki grabbed his arm, almost getting slapped away. She'd managed to dodge the second blow but the third nailed her in the stomach sending her crashing against the desk. Getting up and walking over, he picked her up by the front of her shirt, lifting her clear off the ground.

"Hello, Saki."

"Leon....... please...... don't do this...."

"Now where's the fun if I don't?" With that, he threw her into the bookshelf. She landed hard, books falling on top of her. Out of the corner of his eye, Leon saw Chris try to jump him so he turned, landing a swift kick to the side of his head. Chris slammed into the desk, grasping his skull in pain. 

"Leon....." He looked over seeing Saki get to her feet. She stumbled, leaning against the mostly filled bookshelf for support. He waltzed up, giving her a feral grin. Then he suddenly glared, becoming more serious. He pressed his hands on either side of her head, trapping her.

"Yes, Saki?" he whispered, his hot breath on her neck. He grinned as she shivered.

"W-what happened to you? Why are you doing this?" He seemed to pause as if he was thinking.

"I guess I just enjoy giving you pain....."

"No..... you're not Leon...." He tilted his head, amused.

"Well, then, who am I?"

"A monster...." His eyes narrowed, telling her she had just made a big mistake.

"Monster, huh?" Her eyes widen in fear.

"Leon, please no." He suddenly backhanded her, sending her to crash into a small table, the lamp hitting the floor.

"I'm not Leon, remember," he spat bitterly. Chris got to his feet, blood dripping from the small wound he now had by his right eye. He charged, swinging his right fist only to have it caught. While Leon began crushing it, he drew his Glock 17, bashing it over the boy's head. Having already been hit there, he didn't take it well. "Bastard! That hurt!"

"Oh, and this didn't," Chris snapped back, examining his hand. Leon began to stumble a bit, the loss of blood catching him once more.

"You promised......." Leon, through his daze, snapped his head over, seeing Saki. She was sitting on the floor, back against the wall, looking up slightly. Her clothes were slightly torn from the beatings and glass and blood dripped down from her lower lip. Her bright red eyes were now clouded over, her body trembling. "You promised you wouldn't leave me. Now you've gone leaving the Leon from Hell in your wake. Pain? You've caused enough by leaving alone." For a moment, he just stood there, staring at her trembling form. "Kaze ga fuku tabi. Namida sae tobashite kureru." Leon shook his head, blinking repeatedly in confusion.

"W-what?"

"'When the wind blows, it blows away even my tears'," she translated, looking over at him. Leon suddenly shook his head again, rubbing his temple. He then clenched his eyes shut, breathing hard.

"Leon?" Chris edged forward. He calmed.

"Chris? Saki?" His voice was soft and quiet. He suddenly seemed exhausted, leaning against the wall. Saki was on her feet, ignoring pain, getting to Leon's side.

"Leon? Is that you?"

"Help me...." 

"He's back!" Saki exclaimed. Chris bit his bottom lip.

"For now. No telling what'll happen. He better not hit me again," he mumbled.

"Kill me...... please....."

"What!?" Saki shrieked. He looked up at her, his still red eyes making her shiver.

"I-I'm infected. Mitch injected me with the G-Virus..... What happened? Why am I bleeding?"

"G-Virus......"

"No! You can't give up!"

"Saki! I'm the walking dead. It's too late."

"No..... don't say that."

"I'm sorry..... Chris, do something before I lose it again." Chris was speechless.

_'I can't **kill** Leon. There has to be another way.'_

"Chris....." He jolted, being pulled from his thoughts.

"Leon....---" The door suddenly crashed open, revealing Wesker in the doorway. All eyes turned as he raised a gun, smirking.

"I guess its true: If you want something done right you have to do it yourself." He pulled the trigger. Leon pushed Saki, the bullet just grazing his and Chris' head.

"Leon, move. I'll handle this." The blonde grinned, suddenly finding a bit of strength.

"No. You're not the only one who has a score to settle with him."

"You're suppose to be killing them. That's what you were told to do. Am I going to have to teach you to behave?" Leon's grin became a smirk.

"You could try...."

"Oh, I see.... well, don't think I don't have any tricks up my sleeve. Shall we?"

"Shall we what? Die? If you insist." Before Wesker could blink, Leon was in front of him, landing two punches across his face and in his gut before nailing a kick to his chest that sent him into the wide hall. Leon let out a short laugh, following him. As he got up, Wesker was kicked in the head, sending him further down the hall. Chris and Saki raced out just in time to witness Wesker slide down the hallway.

"Son of a bitch....... little punk...." Wesker continued as he got to his feet. He froze as he realized he was now staring face-to-face with the former blue-eyed ex-cop.

"You say something?"

"Yeah....." He gave a swift chop to his neck. " Good night." Leon's hand flew to his neck, his bangs hiding his eyes. He chuckled, slamming his fist into Wesker's gut. In turn, his arm flew up, knocking Leon in the jaw. He landed, doing a back flip, ending up kneeling. "Hmm..... You've improved. Impressive for it being such a short time. But still not enough." He drew a combat knife, about to slash the blonde's face when a shot rang out, the dagger clanging to the floor. Saki slid over, sweeping her leg across, tripping Wesker who landed on his back.

"We're still here, you son of a bitch," Chris growled, waltzing up near Leon who was still kneeling.

"You okay?" He stood, Saki following suit.

"Yeah....." Pressing off the ground, Wesker jumped to his feet. Slamming his foot down on the dagger. it flipped up. Catching it by the blade, he threw it, Leon moving his head and hearing a sharp thud followed by Chris' scream.

"Ahh! God dammit!!" Chris grabbed the handle, pulling it out of his left shoulder. Wesker gave them a small grin.

"I'll be back." He looked at Chris. "Don't worry, Redfield, you'll live. You always manage to." With that, he left, his laugh echoing threw the dim hall. At hearing the dagger clang to the floor, Leon turned on his heel, hurrying over to his injured friend. Taking off his shirt, Leon tore it into strips, making sure his blood wasn't on any of the ones he used for Chris' wound.

"I'm gonna kill that bastard," he murmured. He suddenly flinched, turning to see Saki with his blood on her fingers. "No. Saki, don't do that."

"Why?"

"I don' want you to get infected. You--"

"I don't care," she interjected. 

"What?"

"You don't care if you die so why should I?" She stared at the blood stained on her hand.

"Saki..." He reached for her hand only to have her pull away.

"No! Don't start lecturing me! I...." She started crying, letting go of tears she'd held in for some time. "I love you. I don't want anything to happen to you, Leon!" He just stared speechless, his red eyes transfixed on her small form that was shaking from her sobs.

"Saki...." She looked up, tears streaking down.

"H-hai?" She gasped as a pairs of arms pulled her to his bare chest. Sniffling, she rested her head on its side and began tracing his faint muscle line causing him to shiver slightly.

"I'm sorry." He pulled away, cleaning her hand of the blood with a piece of his shirt. "There."

"Leon? You okay," Chris whispered.

"Yeah. Saki?"

"I meant what I said."

"I know. But I don't see how we can fix this. I---" He was cut short as Saki leaned up, capturing his lips with hers. Alarmed, he pulled away. "No, Saki! I love you but I don't want to chance giving you the virus!"

"Y-you love me?" He blushed a bit, realizing what he'd just blurted out.

"Well, yeah. A guy would have to be blind not to fall for a cute girl like you." She smiled, laughing a bit as she wiped her tears away.

"See, Chris? I told you he was sweet."

"Yeah and I hate to break this up but we should get going and meet up with the others." Saki blushed.

"Gomen nasai.....," she murmured. _'Way to kill a moment, Chris.'_

"Where are they?"

"We found Mitch's office so they're searching it. We should get going. You _are_ coming with, right, Leon?" He shot a glance at Saki before answering.

"Yes."

---

"They've been gone awhile, Claire. Come on. Let's go."

"Hold on. I have to finish this."

"What are you doing?"  
"I'm transferring all the files to a disk and clearing his computer."

"Sweet." Carlos opened the door a bit, scanning the hall. "Well, I hate to rush you but I don't want to chance running into _anything_." She laughed a bit, remembering the Hunters.

"I know, Carlos. I understand."

"How much longer?"

"Calm down. I'm almost d---"

"Claire?" He looked over, seeing her staring at the screen confused. "What's up? Claire?"

"Huh?"

"What's that matter?"

"I just found this." She tapped on the screen. "It's another report."

"So?"

"It says they found something that's tied with Alexia Ashford's work..." she trailed off as she continued to read.

_A short while ago our now first command, Albert Wesker, came to us with a find. It appeared that Alexia Ashford had finally risen. And here I thought she was some sort of myth thought up by that crazed man Alfred. But it turns out Alexander made twins. I wonder what ever happened to him. I haven't heard from him in ages. Oh, well..._

_Anyway, she'd been testing with the virus and from what I heard from Albert it was successful. However, the compound was destroyed. Chris Redfield was there, according to Wesker, and he'd activated the self-destruct sequence....---"_

"Claire, hurry up."

"Yeah. I'm saving this too." After some typing, a disk popped out of the drive. Claire, in turn, took it and put in her side pack. "Let's go. Now all he's got on this thing are those crazy journals and Solitaire." Carlos raised an eyebrow at the said card game, then shrugged.

"O-kay." They left, entering the empty hall. "So.... you knew this Alexia?"

"Remember when Chris told you guys about his trip to Rockfort Island to come rescue me? She was one of the ones who were behind all the stuff that was going on."

"Yeah, I remember Chris telling us. Wasn't there a brother?"

"Yeah, she had a twin brother named Alfred. He was obsessed with his sister because he hadn't seen her in ten years. She was in a compound located in Antarctica, sleeping, waiting for her experiment to finish. She'd given herself her own virus and wanted it to produce slowly so it wouldn't kill her. Anyway, back on Rockfort Island, Alfred would dress up as her and he even imitated her voice. I actually thought it was her until I had seen the dress and wig. That and the fact that even though he wasn't dressed like her he still used her voice."

"Sounds like he needed a girlfriend." Claire laughed.

"Oh, yeah. Hey, did you hear from Chris that Alfred's grandfather helped organize Umbrella?"

"No. That son of a bitch's grandpa started this."

"Yeah. Sucks---" They came upon a room that appeared to have been a small library or study. The door was off its hinges, splinters scattered across the floor, and random books knocked off the shelves. "--doesn't it..." 

"What the hell happened here?" Claire took a step only to jump and draw back at the sound of a small crack. Looking down, she found a pair of black shades.

"I don't know what happened.....," she picked them up, glaring at them, "...but I know _who_ happened."

---

"Where are we going?"

"Honestly. I don't know."

"Chris!" the two exclaimed.

"What? Calm down. We--" Shots could be heard from behind. Looking back, the three spotted Claire and Carlos running toward them being followed by more T-virus creatures. These looked like what used to be a flock of penguins. Decayed muscles, some missing eyes or pieces of their beaks, and the smell they gave off was nauseating.

"What are you guys doing?! Run!"

"You, two. Go!" Chris yelled, firing upon the creatures. Leon and Saki broke into a run, the others following and keeping the monsters at bay.

"Oh, no!"

"Dead end! Dammit!"

"No, look, there's a door!" Carlos exclaimed.

"But it's locked!" The door had a small window that didn't show much and an 'X' right below it.

"Watch out," Leon said, moving Saki aside. He kick it, the solid door falling in. "After you."

"Hurry! Get inside!" One of the penguins slid up only to lose it's head, blood and whatever was left of it's brain splattered. The five rushed in, Leon and Carlos lifting and replacing the door behind them.

"Phew! That was close."

"Poor penguins......"

"Hey, Claire, want keep one as a pet?"

"Shut up, Carlos!"

"Okay, that's enough. Is everyone okay?"

"Define 'okay', Chris," Saki murmured.

"Hey, Leon, what happened to you? Where's your shirt?" Carlos then looked from Leon to Saki. "Ooohh.. Did Chris interrupt something?" he asked, smirking evilly. Saki blushed and Claire turned red, glaring at Carlos for the comment, being that she seemed to have her own crush on the ex-cop. She then looked at Leon.

"Oh, my God! Your eyes!" Leon frowned a bit, changing the subject.

"Where are we?"

"Away from the killer penguins."

"Poor penguins...."

"You're killin' me, Claire."

"Shut _up_, Carlos." Chris sighed, shaking his head and rolling his eyes. The room wasn't that big and it was dark. There were a few tables with lab equipment and in the back was what appeared to be a cryogenic sleeping chamber.

"Wow... what the hell is this?" Saki walked over, wiping the glass covering to see through. 

"It's a person." Chris peered through, eyes widening.

"Claire...."

"What is it?"

"Isn't that...?" She looked in.

"No, it can't be......"

---

TBC...

Index:

The line Saki says is from Chiho's song for Dragonball Z 'Okeari, my Boy' - 'Welcome home, my Boy' Its suppose to be a song from Bulma to her son, Trunks. I love that song so much! It's so sweet. I just had to use a line from it.... by the way, I don't own that either.... ^_^

Hai - yes

Gomen nasai - I'm sorry

A/N: Cliffhanger! Who could it be? Anyway, sorry again for it taking so long. I had a few projects and work so it was a little difficult but the next one is half way done so it shouldn't be _as_ long to get up..... heheh... yeah... REVIEW! I love reviews! They make me want to keep writing otherwise I find it pointless and stop. If no one likes it then why continue, right? Anyway, next chapter will be up sooner then this one.... If anyone has any questions please check my bio for my e-mail and put FANFICTION in the subject cuz I might erase it by accident. (Oops) You can also check me out on DeviantART.com under 'Blue-eyed-Demon' Arigato gonzimasu! ^_^

Ja ne,

Hotaru Sasaki


	5. A Troubled Reunion

A/N: Oh, my God... Honto ni gomen! I didn't think that I would be so busy! Anyway, for those of you who will continue to read, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I really didn't think it would take me SOOO LONG! Oh, boy... but anyway, this is, of course, Chapter 5. Um.. yeah.. I've taken enough time as it is... just read. Gomen nasai...

_'Thoughts'_

Resident Evil: Simply Murder

Chapter 5

Claire continued to stare into the chamber in disbelief as Chris looked around, finding the control panel.

"Damn! Why can't there be a button that says 'open'?" Just as Carlos peered in, the figure inside stirred, causing him to jump back.

"AH! He opened his eyes!"

"Got it!" The lid opened; smoke emitting and crawling along the floor. The person leaned up, looking around. His skin was covered in a thin sheen of sweat as if he was in a steam room and his expression was stern but exhausted. Claire crept closer, kneeling down next to him.

"Steve...?" He looked down at her for a minute before emerging from the pod. His outfit consisted of a black T-shirt with a dragon etched in white down the front with a black button-up with red flames at the base and all the buttons undone. He had black, baggy pants, lace-up boots, and his trademark wrist buckles. Claire stood, running in front of him. "Steve?" His expression remained the same, him staring at her dully. "Steve? Are you okay? You have no idea how happy I am to see that you're alive."

"Hey, Chris, that's the kid you told us about?" Leon whispered.

"Yeah, I guess. But...."

"Steve? Say something." He continued to stare. "Steve, you're scaring me. Is something wrong?" He tilted his head at this point, giving her a funny look.

"Who are you?" Claire paled, pupils shrinking.

"W-what?" He shifted his weight, crossing his arms, now more awake.

"Who _are_ you?" She shifted her weight a bit, feeling a little uncomfortable under his intense, yet seemingly annoyed gaze.

"You don't remember me? I'm Claire. We met at Rockfort Island, Alfred Ashford, he ----" Steve gave her a stern look, uncrossing his arms.

"Look, I know who he is. How do _you know_? Were you on the island too? How did you escape?" Claire couldn't believe what she was hearing. She looked at him nervously, stuttering her words.

"Steve..... I-I was with you the whole time.... we... we escaped together..." He gave her a sour look.

"Uhhh.... no."

"But---" He held up his hand.

"I said no."

_'Umbrella bastards. What did they do to him?!'_

"Claire...?" She looked at her brother, still in some slight shock.

"Chris, didn't Wesker say that his 'organization' had him. He-- that report!" Saki , who was standing near her at the moment, jumped at her sudden exclamation.

"What? What report?" Chris asked.

"I found a report about Alexia Ashford on Mitch's computer. That's what it was talking about..."

"Chris?" Chris snapped his head in the direction the voice came from, finding Steve looking at him intently.

"Um...yes?" Steve narrowed in eyes in thought, pointing at him weakly.  
"You're Chris Redfield. I've... I've heard of you before." Claire grit her teeth, closing her eyes.

"Yeah, from me." Steve glared at her.

"Who the hell _are_ you?"

"I'm Claire Redfield!!!!"

"It's not ringing a bell!!" he snapped. Chris came up, resting a hand on Steve's shoulder.

"Okay, okay. Break it up," Carlos said, stepping between them. "You guys fight like you're married." Claire's face reddened, turning and crossing her arms.

"Okay, on a lighter note: the penguins are gone," Leon said, peering out the tiny window. Saki looked at him, walking closer to the door. Steve raised an eyebrow, a look of confusion on his fine features.

"Penguins?"

"Long story, Steve," Chris replied. Carlos threw his hands up, walking up next to Leon who was still holding up the door.

"Let's get outta here, man," he said, "I'm not liking the aquarium from Hell."

"I agree," Chris said. He then turned to Steve. "Steve, are you coming with us?"

"Whatever. Better then being locked in that coffin. By the way, thanks."  
"Don't mention it. Hey , Leon, can you move that door?" Leon scoffed.

"Thanks to that stupid virus."

"You too?" Leon turned his attention to Steve. "I have one of those freaky viruses too."

"The T-Veronica virus," Claire said flatly.

"How do you know that?!" She growled, rolling her eyes in frustration.

"Claire, calm down."  
"Shut _up_, Carlos!" Steve shook his head, turning back to Leon and Chris.

"Anyway, could we stop somewhere before we leave? I know where the serums are." The ex-cop's intense hearing served him well, causing him to shift slightly as he turned to face Steve.

"Serums?" Leon's attention was undivided now. "Serums for what?"

"All the crap they have as far as I know." Claire perked up.

"That's true, Leon. The files I found claim Mitch made a cure." She pulled out the disk she had made, handing it to her brother. "This is almost everything on Mitch's computer."

"Almost?"

"We don't need Solitaire, Chris." He took the disk, examining it a bit before putting it in his side pack.

"This is everything?"

"There wasn't much. But I found the files specifically on the G-Virus and they made an antidote," Claire finished. Leon was startled as Saki glomped him, almost causing him to lose a slight his grip on the door.

"See, Leon-koi, you'll be okay," she exclaimed.

_'I can only hope,'_ he thought, his face stern. Saki paused, giving him a worried look.

"Leon? Leon, are you okay?" He blinked, snapping out of his trance.

"Huh? Yeah, let's get out of here..." Armed and waiting, they watched as Leon pulled the door away, revealing an empty hall. Remaining brains from whatever penguins they had shot from before littered the floor and some of the wall. Also, the stench remained.

"Smells like the mansion," Chris muttered.

"They really left," Leon said, looking around.

"You were guessing?" Saki asked. Leon blushed a bit, being caught.

"Well, see, it's hard to see out of that window and it's kinda hard while holding the door up so... maybe. It's more of an educated guess from my limited view," he explained, causing her to laugh. Claire made a face at the sight of the mess.

"Poor penguins..."

"Claire."

"_Carlos_!" He sighed, rubbing the back of his head.

"I give up..." They walked out, scanning for movement, guns ready. After checking the hall, Chris turned to the newcomer.

"Well, Steve, lead the way." Steve cracked his knuckles, getting in front and looking at the group.

"You got it. But.. uh..," he looked around at them, "do you guys have an extra gun or something?"

"Sorry, we don't have any full automatics," Claire sneered. Steve backed up near Carlos and Leon, keeping his eye on the crazed redhead.

"What's _with_ her?" Steve asked.

"Maybe it's her 'time of the month' or something," Carlos murmured, causing Leon to stifle a laugh. Saki shook her head in disgust.

"No, Steve, we don't. Sorry," Chris said.

"No, here. Use mine," Carlos said, handing him his gun. He pulled out the Remington, grinning. "Still has a few rounds left."

"Right, here we go."

"Hopefully, we won't run into any of those Hunters," Carlos said, shuddering. "Things are gonna give me nightmares for weeks."

"Or those poor penguins."

"Claire," came the chorus.

---

"Perfect." Mitch was in the boiler room, setting the water pressure. "Now the compound will flood. My beautiful creations, you will be free. Free to roam the world." He laughed to himself, preparing to leave. "Now I just need to get rid of those people and Wesker." He hurried down the empty hall, stopping at his office. Once he noticed that things were moved, he started to panic. "No, they didn't." He raced over to the computer, hitting a few buttons to find a mid-game of Solitaire. "NO! They have my research! All of it!"

"Have all what research?" Mitch spun around.

"Wesker!" He walked in a bit, surveying the room.

"That would be me. What's the problem?"

"Those sons of a bitches have all my work on the G-Virus and the G-Tyrant Program!" He nervously ran a hand through his hair. "I remember what's in it, but they have a copy. I need to destroy it! Nobody can have it! Wesker, I want you get it from them. Destroy it! Destroy them!" Wesker gave a deep sigh, scanning the room once more before looking at Mitch. He didn't understand why he'd decided to put up with this but he was too far in to back out now.

"Very well. At least I get to kill someone," he murmured, looking at the crazed man over his shades. "Consider it done." Replacing his sunglasses, he left the room. "And that someone will finally be Chris."

"Stupid bastards... that belongs to me. I want it back. I hate them! All of them!" Mitch took a deep breath, calming himself. "They're all going to die. Then no one will have _my _virus."

---

"This should be the room." The group entered, scanning for movement.

"Ah... more fish," Saki murmured, peering into the tank that covered the fall wall. "Evil fish..." Leon chuckled, causing her to blush furiously. "Don't you agree?" He nodded, remembering how Wesker pushed him into the water. He then shuddered upon remembering the feeling of that horrible fish under him, waiting to swallow him whole. He was also beginning to wonder if he was ever going to get used to these repeated brushes with death. Shaking that thought off, he looked over at the cute, ruby-eyed girl before him, coming up and lifting her shirt slightly, catching her off guard. She gasped, reflexively knocking his hand away.

"How's your hip?" He asked, ignoring her swatting.

"I'm okay..." she murmured, blushing harder.

"Okay, that's enough flirting. Let's find these serums," Carlos said, smirking. Steve came up to a cabinet that covered the wall. Opening the door, he groaned upon seeing a good number of potions.

"Oh, man... This isn't cool. How the hell are we suppose to know what's what?"

"Hey, look at this," Chris said, pointing to the far left. There was a small strip of letters, one next to each row. "It's like a grid. And there's numbers at the top." Saki picked up a clipboard from one of the desks, scanning through it.

"Here's the list." She searched the numerous names. "G-21, Chris."

"What's that?"

"G-Virus serum and... V-19, T-Veronica antidote." Claire came up, swiping the clipboard from her grasp. "Hey!"

"Then what the hell's the rest of it?" Saki gave her a death glare. Leon walked up, rubbing her head before turning to Chris.

"Well, I'm ready. Hook me up. This stuff's been fighting me for awhile." Saki glanced at him from the corner of her eye, noticing something.

"Leon! All your cuts are healed."

"That's the only good thing," he said, frowning.

"Please don't hurt me, Carlos," Steve said, watching Carlos check for air bubbles in the needle before turning toward him.

"Oh, quit your whining and calm down." He set the needle down, tying an elastic band around the boy's arm and searching for a vein.

"I'm not whining," Steve muttered, his eyes wandering off.

"Yeah, yeah, hold still." Chris shook his head, looking over at Leon.

"Ready?"

"Always." He walked up to Leon, grabbing the elastic band from Carlos once he'd untied it from Steve's arm.

"OW! C'mon, Carlos, that hurt."

"You're whining again." Steve sighed, looking at the fish swimming in the tank.

"Leon, why don't you sit down," Chris suggested, walking over to the cabinet and grabbing G-21. Leon did as he was told, feeling a bit tired anyway. Saki came over, wrapping her arms around Leon from behind, kissing his head.

"You okay?" she asked.

"I will be in a minute." Claire grunted in disgust before continuing to look through the list she'd taken from the ruby-eyed girl. Frustrated, she wandered over to one of the computers, searching the files.

"Hm... Well, apparently most of those vials are duds. They wanted to keep them to go over what they did wrong. Being how those were the last ones, they're okay," Claire muttered, still reading from the computer. Chris found a vein, grabbing the needle and getting it ready. Once he was, he noticed Leon wasn't looking at him.

"Hey, you okay?"

"I- I'm just not comfortable with needles," he replied, head still turned. He was looking at Saki who was leafing through a random book. Once she noticed he was staring at her, she came over, kneeling down.

"Afraid of needles? You've been fighting zombies, Hunters and --" Leon gave him a bit of a glare.

"I'm not comfortable with them as much anymore. I've never had a big problem, but when you see Mitch standing there... just waiting... to ... Look, okay, needles are not on my good side right now," he stated, looking at Saki again. She frowned, kissing his hand.

"Okay, chill. This is just gonna sting for a second." Nodding, Leon closed his eye, flinching once he felt it pierce his skin.

---

"Okay, I've destroyed all the results and anything that will lead to me should be disposed of..." Mitch continued to mutter to himself as he stormed down the hall, carrying a small, steel briefcase. "Hopefully, Wesker will kill those bastards and then..." He grinned, weapon sticking slightly out of his lab coat from his belt. "I just have to turn on the machines that start the water pressure sequence." He walked into the said room and proceeded to enter the code. "Done. Now for Wesker."

"Where should we go now?" Mitch froze, grasping onto the briefcase.

"Where's the door we came through?"

"We can't go that way." Mitch's eyes widened, recognizing the last voice immediately.

_'Leon!'_

"Why?"

"Iie! We can't go that way!"

"What's the matter with Saki?"

"Long story." He peered out, seeing that they had already passed him. Saki clutched onto Leon's arm, causing him to chuckled. "It's okay. We won't go that way. Not unless you guys are up for a swim?"

"Hell, no! There's a shark, isn't there? I've had enough shark for one day!" Carlos snapped.

"Okay, Carlos. It's okay," Chris said, patting his shoulder. Mitch smiled, making sure his weapons were ready.

"Leon!" The said person froze, gritting his teeth. "I want you to kill them," Mitch commanded, coming into view. "Kill them all. I order you to." The group froze, gazing at Leon, hoping the virus still didn't have a hold on him. He smirked, turning to face the mad scientist, crossing his arms over his bare chest .

"I don't think so."

"What?" Leon's eyes were a dark shade of purple, a sign that the virus, though strong, was dying. "You son of a bitch, you fou--" His eyes darted over, noticing something. "You!" He pointed towards his target. "How did you escape? Did they let you out?!" Steve glared, aiming his gun at him.

"What's it to you? I'm leaving with them and you can't stop us!" Mitch practically had a vein popping out of his forehead.

_'How could this happen? All my work! Damn it all!'_

"Where's Jack?" Claire demanded. Mitch blinked, realization coming over him.

"What? Why the hell would you--- That traitorous bastard! I knew it! I should have killed him when I had the chance a long time ago! This is his fault!" Mitch dug into his lab coat, causing the others to tense. He pulled out a tiny grenade, smiling. The group flinched, a few of them backing away.

"What the---!!"

"Good-bye.." He pulled the pin, throwing it. "And don't worry, Jack and Wesker will join you soon enough!" He cackled, running off.

"Shit!" They all turned, running like hell. As it went off, they went flying, some hitting into the upcoming wall. Looking back, Chris could see the fire that was slowly making its way toward them, spreading.

"You guys okay? Do I need a head count?" Chris asked, getting up and dusting himself off.

"For God's sake, Chris, define it," Saki murmured, leaning up.

"Well, we're alive if that's what you mean," Steve confirmed, rubbing his head.

"Can I just stay like this?" They turned to find Leon lying on his back, staring up at the ceiling. Saki stood, leaning over him.

"You want to stay _here_?"

"Good point," he replied. She smiled, holding out her hand, helping him up. Once up, he dusted his pants off, glancing at the others.

"You're not burned, are you? You still need a shirt." He shook his head, watching Saki give a relieved sigh.

"Are you complaining?" She blushed.

"No, I n-never said anything like that." Claire sighed in disgust, earning a glare from the ruby-eyed girl. "Do you have a problem?"

"Maybe."

"Jealous," Saki muttered.

"Ex_cuse_ me?!" Leon went a bit wide-eyed, stepping in front of Saki, facing Claire.

"Hey! Calm down! We almost died just now and you two are fighting."

"Cat fight," Carlos whispered, earning his own glare from Leon, "Hey, what?"

"She started it!" Claire screamed, pointed behind the ex-cop.

"Iie, you did."

"We're in the middle of a disease-ridden complex. Can we leave?" Steve interjected.

"Yes, please." Carlos came up next to Leon.

"They're fighting over you," he whispered, causing him to blush.

"I realize that!" He sighed, blushing harder. "Okay! Now that bastard is getting away. What are we going to do because fighting with each other isn't very productive!" The fight quieted, all eyes now on Leon.

"Hey, man, calm down." He took a deep breath, releasing it slowly.

"I'm okay..."

"But he's right," Steve started, "What are we going do?"

"We can't go out the way we came, not unless we find another way to get there. Saki and I ran into Wesker and now there's a shark loose over there."

"Well, unless we find some sort of map, we'll have to wander for now."

"I hate wandering," Claire whined, stomping her foot for emphasis.

"Have no choice."

"Wonderful," she muttered with great sarcasm. Slight growling caught their attention as they turned noticing that the penguins had returned. They froze, hoping that they would pass by.

"I take it those are those penguins you were talking about," Steve whispered, barely moving an inch.

"Yeah," Saki squeaked back. The flock started toward them.

"Shit! Run!" They took off, randomly firing at them.

"So much for wandering," Steve puffed.

"Nah, this is speed wandering."

"Oh, give it a _rest_, Carlos," Claire snapped. They raced down the narrow hall, passing numerous doors finally going into the one at the end. Once out, they slammed the door shut, Leon and Chris leaning against it. Steve leaned on his knees, trying to catch his breath. Leon looked up, recognizing the room immediately. To be sure he got off the door, looking at it to find the carving of Genbu, the tortoise/serpent etched into it.

"Genbu. This is perfect, we can leave," Leon said between gasps of air.

"Genbu? What the hell's a Genbu?"

"Saki told me about it. He's a god that helped protect ancient China. It's a myth, right, Saki?" Silence. "Saki?!"

"Where is she?"

"No, she was with us. Running away from those _things_ with us...," Leon whispered.

"What if she's still in there?"

"You've been wrong on each one of your assumptions, Carlos, but this time," Chris looked at the door," I think you may be right."

"Then what the hell are we waiting for?!" Leon went to open the door, Chris stopping him.

"Wait. Even if she is in there, we know for a fact those things didn't get her. We have to wait for them to leave."

"I don't care! I'll go alone."

"Leave her. She's not important anyway." Leon froze, slowly turning to face Claire.

"What did you just say?" Though clearly pissed, Claire was still startled by how cold his voice sounded.

"We came for the information. Not some little girl." That was it. Leon stalked up, Chris having missed grabbing him, and slapped her. She kept her face turned as he started screaming at her.

"What the _hell_ is wrong with **you**?! _Just_ some little girl?! Even _if_ that was all she was, what about Sherry Birkin in Raccoon City? She _**is**_ a little girl! Yet you went out on a limb to get her to safety. So, you better listen and listen good. Saki is more important to me then you can even comprehend. Now _I'm _going to save someone. Sorry, Redfield, but it's my turn to steal the spotlight." With that, he whirled around to find everyone else staring at him. "**What**?" They backed off. They then froze as the P.A. system came to life.

---

Saki's muffled scream was lost in Wesker's hand as he dragged her down the hall. Finally, he let her go, drawing his gun. She gasped for air, eyeing the weapon now aimed at her chest. Wesker had heard them running down the hall and managed to snag her as she passed the door he was in.

"What did Mitch say?" He demanded, taking off his shades to see better in the dim lighting. Saki's eyes widened upon seeing his cat-like eyes. He pushed her with the gun a bit, gaining her attention. "Well?"

"What?"

"He said he was going to get rid of me, right?" She nodded slowly, keeping her gaze on him. He laughed at the cruel irony, finally turning his attention back to his hostage. "In any case, where's Leon?"

"He was with me. You didn't see him?"

" 'Fraid not. Oh, well. He'll come soon enough. He _did _promise not to leave you after all." Saki glared a bit, yelping as he grabbed her wrist, dragging her further. He squeezed, nearly crushing it.

"Wha- ow, what is it you want?" Tears sprang to her eyes in pain.

"Personally, all of you dead." She tensed a bit, feeling uneasy. "But I need those viruses and their antidotes."

"So why do you need Leon?" They entered a large boiler room, random machines emitting smoke and steam as they passed. They continued across the wide room, Saki trying to pull her wrist away every now and then. He suddenly stopped, looking at her.

"Well, normally, I would say its none of your business but you probably aren't going to live very long..." He smirked at the look of terror in her face. "The virus."

"But he's cured." He started walking again, dragging her.

"Doesn't matter. I know some people who'd want to examine him." She glared at him, suppressing an urge to hit him.

"So he's just a lab rat!"

"Life's a bitch, sweetheart." She rolled her eyes, tripping slightly.

"Oh, yeah. That's real charming," she replied with a sigh. "Where are you taking me?"

"Somewhere."

"Damn you and your smart ass answers," she snapped, trying to free herself. They came up to a doorway, Wesker pulling her in front of himself. He traced her jaw line with the barrel of the gun, seeing she was shaking visibly.

"You will behave, won't you?" She slapped him. As he turned back to face her, he gave her a feral grin. "Hm... I like you..." He slammed her up against the door they were in front of. She grunted as her head hit hard, making her dizzy. "That wasn't very nice, you know."

"Go to hell...," she spat.

"Already there, dear. Though," he began kissing her neck, feeling her tense up, "you could change that."

"G-get off of me! Hentai! Y-yamero!" She kneed him in the gut, not only making him stop but causing him lose his breath.

"Very nice, indeed," he mumbled, looking down at her. "I'll just make Leon pay for it instead. Wouldn't want to hurt a pretty girl like you."

"Wh- what are you talking about? Make him pay?" He roughly grabbed her shoulders, bringing her close. He ignored her questions.

"You and I could have a lot of fun," he said, giving her a once over. She glared, fidgeting in his grasp, causing him to chuckle evilly. "My, my how cute you are when you're angry," he exclaimed, throwing her through the now open doorway. Being it was automated; he closed it, entering the locking code.

"What the hell are you doing?! Let me out, Wesker!!!" Her cries were muffled to him. He turned, laughing as he walked away.

"Don't worry, I'll be back." He chambered a round as he reached the hall once again. "Now then, where is that damn--"

"Wesker!"

"Found him," he mumbled, doing a 180 back into the boiler room, finding Mitch up in the middle of one of the catwalks. "Mitch, there you are. I was hoping you would point me in Redfield's direction."

"Haven't seen them."

"Hmm..." He eyed Mitch's briefcase. "So what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be prepping our escape?"

"Oh, I did. It's on the east side, waiting. I was... uh... looking for you." He put the briefcase down to rub his arm, pretending it was heavy.

"Well, then, I guess I don't need you anymore." With that, before Mitch had a chance to grab his weapon, Wesker fired; the shot hitting Mitch's right shoulder.

"AH!!!! You son of a bitch!!! What are you doing?!" Saki looked out, seeing Mitch clutching his arm and Wesker aiming his gun at him.

"People are so easy to play," Wesker murmured to himself more then to Mitch.

"Wesker, you--" He fired again, disabling his other arm. "Bastard...! Double-crossing son of a bitch!"

"Who's double-crossing? I never worked for you from the start. You see, I broke my contract with Umbrella. In fact, main headquarters thinks I'm dead. I was just on a mission for my new employers."  
"So Wesker was here for the G-Virus all along," Saki muttered to herself, "and now he wants Leon..."

"Nice working with you," he said with a smile. He fired twice, watching Mitch fall into the tank below the catwalk. Hearing screams, he looked over at where Saki was being kept. "Poor girl, now I've traumatized her... Oh, well." He chuckled, fetching the briefcase. "Now I have my getaway and the virus. Just one more thing..." There was a sudden blaring as the P.A. system coming to life, the female computerized voice giving the message.

"Attention. Please exit the complex. Ten minutes till detonation." He pulled his shades out, putting them on.

"Hmm.. more then enough time."

---

TBC...

Index: (Saki's Japanese)

Iie - no

-koi - added at the end of a name to show great affection

Hentai - pervert

Yamero – stop

A/N: And that's Chapter 5... turned out a little more R-rated then originally planned (Wesker... made him a little sexy...). Oh, well. So yes, it was Steve. I _HAD_ to bring him back. I read both the book and played the game and cried both times. He was so cool. They always have to kill some of the best characters. Why couldn't they kill Claire instead? I hate her. The only reason she's here is because of her ties with the T-Veronica incident. Nothing more, nothing less. But anyway, hopefully the next chapter will be up sooner. I'm not sure if it will end up being the last one or not. We'll have to see.

Again, reviews are nice. They make me want to continue otherwise I see no real point. So, yes, they are greatly appreciated.

Ja ne,

Hotaru Sasaki


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